The Awards Pavilion is located on the site of the Pan American Village near the waterfront and downtown Toronto. The Village and Pavilion are designed for use beyond the games; the former as housing and parkland, and the latter as a theater, stage, and social spot.The winning design was inspired by the name Toronto, which means alternatively "place where trees stand at the water" and "meeting place" in the native Iroquois language. The trees are abstracted as a roof that hovers over much of the site; cloud-like, vinyl is incorporated in the form of standard weather balloons.

[Image courtesy winning team | click for larger view]

As these renderings attest, the presence of these helium-filled orbs is striking from afar and underneath.

[Image courtesy winning team | click for larger view]

Another part of the design is the Bar, which is situated above the Victory Soya Mills Silo. The winning team calls this an icon of Toronto, something they further by making it taller. A steel and glass structure sits atop the concrete silo, and a roof of PVC membrane floats above, reiterating the cylindrical forms from below.

[Image courtesy winning team]

This space brings people above the tethered trees/clouds below, letting people imbibe the Toronto skyline along with their drinks.

[Image courtesy winning team | click for larger view]

Overall the design effectively uses the given material of choice in a simple yet powerful manner. Exploiting the lightweight nature of PVC and other plastics, the pavilion and bar are literally uplifting parts of the Pan Am Games and Toronto's growth towards its waterfront.